Fabio Novembre precisely modeled this stool after a famous work of rationalist architecture in Rome, the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana, or Colosseo Quadrato ("Square Colosseum").
The building was abandoned during WWII, and has since been repurposed as the headquarters of luxury fashion house Fendi, but was originally commissioned by Mussolini. Fendi has made its first floor freely accessible to the public as a museum.
The building is instantly recognizable as one of Italy's most beautiful and strikingly austere architectural forms. Novembre's adaptation of the architecture as furniture can be read as a playful nod to Italy's history in the 20th century and prior— acknowledging politics, design and tongue-in-cheek humor all at once.
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